EIT Health teams up with companies for new talents in the healthcare sector

EIT Health (part of the EIT, a European Union body) seeks to work with industrial and technology giants on a pan-European initiative to secure new talent and prepare the healthcare sector for the future.

The EU institution to support innovation in the health sector is launching the WorkInHealth Foundation with the aim of dispelling fears of a labour shortage in the coming decade. The pandemic has accelerated the shift to artificial intelligence and jobs that require specialization in digital environments, data and resources.

More than 120,000 new jobs could be created in the next 10 years, as around 50% of the already existing industrial production jobs in the healthcare sector will be replaced with automated systems. At the same time, in the field of biostructure, organizations strive to hire bioengineers, automation engineers, talents in construction science and technologies.

However, only a third of companies in the healthcare industrial sector have begun efforts to upskill the workforce, with an average investment much lower than companies such as Amazon or AT&T, investing up to 27,000 euros per employee.

The WorkInHealth Foundation is set to create an AI-based platform that will match skilled talent to healthcare jobs across Europe. It is seeking to raise 2 million euros from the technology sector and corporate sponsorships to financially boost campaigns to attract new talent, upgrade the skills of today’s workers as Europe turns towards the digitization of the healthcare sector.

The search for funders will take place in EIT Health’s existing network of partners – which includes companies such as Sanofi and Atos – but also by supporters outside the health sector, including tech giants such as Amazon, Apple and Microsoft.

“If Europe wants to maintain a strong and sustainable healthcare sector that excels in innovation, it must meet the challenge of recruiting and training the best talent.The industry’s need to attract and retain new talent from various industries, while adapting and upgrading the skills of today’s employees in the sector, is clear. A collective effort is needed to develop flexible and exciting career choices, and to identify brilliant talents to tap into them. We are proud to be at the forefront of a long-term collective solution that can strengthen our approach.”, said Celine Carrera, Director of Education at EIT Health and President of the WorkInHealth Foundation.

Retraining – especially in digital skills and R&D activities – forms the basis of several national and European recovery plans for the post-pandemic period. The French Government expects 130,000 new jobs to be created by Startups and scale-ups in the health and technology sector by 2030.

The main themes that WorkInHealth will work on are improving the image and reputation of the healthcare sector, attracting employees to the industry, helping organizations to better identify their needs, and creating educational programs for the development and upskilling of employees and graduates.

“In the biostructure sector, there are several vacancies as there is a shortage of talent, which creates disruption in the industry. It is a critical obstacle that must be overcome. From now on, we must do everything we can to ensure that we do not find ourselves in the same situation in the coming years when it comes to jobs involving digital processes and data in the medical field. We must act immediately.”, noted Cedric Volanti, VP General Manager, Viral Vector Services EU at Thermo Fisher Scientific.